Goutam Ghose hands over the award to child artiste Eklavya. Picture by Prashant Mitra

Ranchi, Nov. 6: Stars descended on the stage of Ranchi Club today, where the Cine Kala Awards were handed over to the state artistes.

Litia Dhunda, a film in Khortha language, was the show stealer as it walked away with two awards — the best local language film as well as the best video film. In the best regional film category, a Bhojpuri film Aaja More Raja received the award.

Chahat, a Nagpuri film, also bagged two awards. While its leading lady Varsha Lakra walked away with the best female actor’s trophy, the award for the best story went to its script writer Ram Nayak, a Simdega author.

Organised by a city-based group Prayas, the event was inaugurated by noted filmmaker Goutam Ghose. President of Jharkhand Motion Pictures Association B.N. Tiwary was also present on the occasion.

Filmmaker V.M. Virag bagged the award for the best director of the year for his film Goria Tor Kirya in Khortha language. The best male actor award went to Deepak Lohar for his role in the Nagpuri smash hit Jharkhand Ka Chhalia.

Artistes and filmmakers of the state received a great morale boost as their works in Nagpuri, Khortha, and other regional languages were appreciated and awarded. Sushil Ankan, Mrinalini Akhori, Deepak Tirkey, Vipul Nayak and Eklavya were awarded for their outstanding performances.

Sanjeev Mishra, the president of Prayas said: “We felt the need for this kind of an award ceremony to recognise and promote regional cinema. Today the market for regional cinema has expanded widely. People now want to see on screen the realities of their own cities, towns and villages rather than the stories of the metropolitan cities and scenic offshore locations”.

The best male and female playback singers’ titles were bagged by Sawan Khalko and Shristi Shefali, respectively. For the best short film Sharab, the Mirage from Black Stone Productions, Dhanbad, was picked up by the jury.

To pep up the evening, Vipul Nayak’s Deepanjali dance group presented a sizzling performance that had the audience swaying. Later, Antara Kaviraj set the stage on fire with her captivating performance on popular Bollywood item numbers, followed by another performance by Deep Sresth and group.